1989–90 Football League

The 1989–90 season was the 91st completed season of The Football League.

The Football League
Season1989–90
ChampionsLiverpool
RelegatedColchester United
New club in LeagueMaidstone United

Liverpool overhauled a greatly improved Aston Villa side to win their 18th league championship trophy and their fifth major trophy in as many seasons under Kenny Dalglish's management. Gary Lineker's arrival at Tottenham Hotspur saw the North Londoners occupy third place after a season of improvement.

In this season, London had eight entrants in the top-flight, the highest number of participants ever.

Luton Town stayed up on goal difference at the expense of Sheffield Wednesday, while Charlton's four-year spell in the First Division came to an end at the beginning of May. Millwall were rooted to the bottom of the division despite briefly topping the league in September.

Leeds United finally returned to the top flight after an eight-year exile, as Howard Wilkinson's side lifted the Second Division championship trophy thanks to a superior goal difference over runners-up Sheffield United, who won their second successive promotion under Dave Bassett.

Swindon Town won the Second Division playoff final but Sunderland were promoted instead after the Swindon board admitted a series of financial irregularities. Swindon were initially demoted to the Third Division and replaced by Tranmere, the division's losing Play-Off finalists, but this decision was later reversed on appeal.

AFC Bournemouth, Stoke City and Bradford City occupied the relegation places. Bournemouth did not return to second tier of English football until the 2013–14 season.

The city of Bristol was celebrating after Rovers were crowned champions and City finished runners-up in the Third Division to gain promotion. The third promotion spot was secured by playoff winners Notts County, who beat Leyland DAF Trophy (i.e. EFL Trophy) winners Tranmere Rovers at Wembley.

Walsall suffered a second successive relegation and would be joined in the Fourth Division the following season by Blackpool, Cardiff City and Northampton Town.

Exeter City were crowned Fourth Division champions and went up to the Third Division along with runners-up Grimsby Town, third-placed Southend United and playoff winners Cambridge United. Newly promoted Maidstone United almost ended their first league season with success, but their promotion hopes were ended by playoff failure.

Colchester United were relegated from the league and replaced by Football Conference champions Darlington, who regained their league status just one season after losing it.

Final league tables and results

The tables and results below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation website,[1] with home and away statistics separated.

First Division
Main article: 1989–90 Football League First Division
First Division
Season1989–90
ChampionsLiverpool
18th English title
RelegatedSheffield Wednesday
Charlton Athletic
Millwall
European Cup Winners' CupManchester United
UEFA CupAston Villa
Matches played380
Goals scored987 (2.6 per match)
Top goalscorerGary Lineker
(24 goals)[2]
Biggest home winLiverpool 9–0 Crystal Palace
(12 September 1989)
Biggest away winCoventry City 1–6 Liverpool
(5 May 1990)
Highest scoringLiverpool 9–0 Crystal Palace
(12 September 1989)
Southampton 6–3 Luton Town
(25 November 1989)

Liverpool won the First Division title for the 18th time, finishing nine points ahead of their nearest rivals Aston Villa, who had emerged as title contenders just two seasons after being promoted, sealing England's solitary UEFA Cup place after the ban on English clubs in European competitions was lifted after five years, although Liverpool missed out on a European Cup place following UEFA's decision to exclude them from European competitions for at least one more season. Tottenham Hotspur improved on their sixth-place finish in 1989 by finishing third. Defending champions Arsenal slipped to fourth, and newly promoted Chelsea finished fifth.

Manchester United finished a disappointing 13th in the league – their lowest since relegation in 1974 – but compensated for this by winning the FA Cup, equalling the record of seven wins in the competition.

Millwall, who briefly topped the table in mid September, went down in bottom place after winning just two more games all season. Charlton Athletic's four-year spell in the First Division ended in relegation, and the final relegation place went to a Sheffield Wednesday side who went down on goal difference after a late turnaround in form for Luton Town.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Liverpool (C) 38 23 10 5 78 37 +41 79 Disqualified from the European Cup[lower-alpha 1]
2 Aston Villa 38 21 7 10 57 38 +19 70 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
3 Tottenham Hotspur 38 19 6 13 59 47 +12 63
4 Arsenal 38 18 8 12 54 38 +16 62
5 Chelsea 38 16 12 10 58 50 +8 60
6 Everton 38 17 8 13 57 46 +11 59
7 Southampton 38 15 10 13 71 63 +8 55
8 Wimbledon 38 13 16 9 47 40 +7 55
9 Nottingham Forest 38 15 9 14 55 47 +8 54
10 Norwich City 38 13 14 11 44 42 +2 53
11 Queens Park Rangers 38 13 11 14 45 44 +1 50
12 Coventry City 38 14 7 17 39 59 −20 49
13 Manchester United 38 13 9 16 46 47 −1 48 Qualification for the European Cup Winners' Cup first round[lower-alpha 2]
14 Manchester City 38 12 12 14 43 52 −9 48
15 Crystal Palace 38 13 9 16 42 66 −24 48
16 Derby County 38 13 7 18 43 40 +3 46
17 Luton Town 38 10 13 15 43 57 −14 43
18 Sheffield Wednesday (R) 38 11 10 17 35 51 −16 43 Relegation to the Second Division
19 Charlton Athletic (R) 38 7 9 22 31 57 −26 30
20 Millwall (R) 38 5 11 22 39 65 −26 26
Source: World Football
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated

First Division results
Home \ Away ARS AST CHA CHE COV CRY DER EVE LIV LUT MCI MUN MIL NWC NOT QPR SHW SOU TOT WDN
Arsenal 0–1 1–0 0–1 2–0 4–1 1–1 1–0 1–1 3–2 4–0 1–0 2–0 4–3 3–0 3–0 5–0 2–1 1–0 0–0
Aston Villa 2–1 1–1 1–0 4–1 2–1 1–0 6–2 1–1 2–0 1–2 3–0 1–0 3–3 2–1 1–3 1–0 2–1 2–0 0–3
Charlton Athletic 0–0 0–2 3–0 1–1 1–2 0–0 0–1 0–4 2–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 0–1 1–1 1–0 1–2 2–4 1–3 1–2
Chelsea 0–0 0–3 3–1 1–0 3–0 1–1 2–1 2–5 1–0 1–1 1–0 4–0 0–0 2–2 1–1 4–0 2–2 1–2 2–5
Coventry City 0–1 2–0 1–2 3–2 1–0 1–0 2–0 1–6 1–0 2–1 1–4 3–1 1–0 0–2 1–1 1–4 1–0 0–0 2–1
Crystal Palace 1–1 1–0 2–0 2–2 0–1 1–1 2–1 0–2 1–1 2–2 1–1 4–3 1–0 1–0 0–3 1–1 3–1 2–3 2–0
Derby County 1–3 0–1 2–0 0–1 4–1 3–1 0–1 0–3 2–3 6–0 2–0 2–0 0–2 0–2 2–0 2–0 0–1 2–1 1–1
Everton 3–0 3–3 2–1 0–1 2–0 4–0 2–1 1–3 2–1 0–0 3–2 2–1 3–1 4–0 1–0 2–0 3–0 2–1 1–1
Liverpool 2–1 1–1 1–0 4–1 0–1 9–0 1–0 2–1 2–2 3–1 0–0 1–0 0–0 2–2 2–1 2–1 3–2 1–0 2–1
Luton Town 2–0 0–1 1–0 0–3 3–2 1–0 1–0 2–2 0–0 1–1 1–3 2–1 4–1 1–1 1–1 2–0 1–1 0–0 1–1
Manchester City 1–1 0–2 1–2 1–1 1–0 3–0 0–1 1–0 1–4 3–1 5–1 2–0 1–0 0–3 1–0 2–1 1–2 1–1 1–1
Manchester United 4–1 2–0 1–0 0–0 3–0 1–2 1–2 0–0 1–2 4–1 1–1 5–1 0–2 1–0 0–0 0–0 2–1 0–1 0–0
Millwall 1–2 2–0 2–2 1–3 4–1 1–2 1–1 1–2 1–2 1–1 1–1 1–2 0–1 1–0 1–2 2–0 2–2 0–1 0–0
Norwich City 2–2 2–0 0–0 2–0 0–0 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–0 2–0 0–1 2–0 1–1 1–1 0–0 2–1 4–4 2–2 0–1
Nottingham Forest 1–2 1–1 2–0 1–1 2–4 3–1 2–1 1–0 2–2 3–0 1–0 4–0 3–1 0–1 2–2 0–1 2–0 1–3 0–1
Queens Park Rangers 2–0 1–1 0–1 4–2 1–1 2–0 0–1 1–0 3–2 0–0 1–3 1–2 0–0 2–1 2–0 1–0 1–4 3–1 2–3
Sheffield Wednesday 1–0 1–0 3–0 1–1 0–0 2–2 1–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–2 0–3 2–0 0–1 2–4 0–1
Southampton 1–0 2–1 3–2 2–3 3–0 1–1 2–1 2–2 4–1 6–3 2–1 0–2 1–2 4–1 2–0 0–2 2–2 1–1 2–2
Tottenham Hotspur 2–1 0–2 3–0 1–4 3–2 0–1 1–2 2–1 1–0 2–1 1–1 2–1 3–1 4–0 2–3 3–2 3–0 2–1 0–1
Wimbledon 1–0 0–2 3–1 0–1 0–0 0–1 1–1 3–1 1–2 1–2 1–0 2–2 2–2 1–1 1–3 0–0 1–1 3–3 1–0
Source:
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

First Division maps
Locations of the Football League First Division 1989–1990 teams
Locations of the Football League First Division London teams 1989–1990

Second Division
Second Division
Season1989–90
ChampionsLeeds United
PromotedLeeds United
Sheffield United
Sunderland
RelegatedBournemouth
Bradford City
Stoke City
Matches played552
Goals scored1,526 (2.76 per match)
Top goalscorerMicky Quinn
(32 goals)[2]

A tight race for promotion from the Second Division saw the two automatic promotion places decided on the final day of the season, with Leeds United going up as champions after an eight-year exile from the First Division, followed by their Yorkshire rivals Sheffield United, who finished runners-up to clinch a second successive promotion and end their 14-year absence from the First Division.

Swindon Town beat Sunderland 1–0 in the playoff final to secure a First Division place for the first time, only for promotion to be withdrawn weeks later for financial irregularities. The Football League promoted Sunderland to the First Division in their place, and demoted them to the Third Division, although they were allowed to remain in the Second Division on appeal. Newcastle United, whose new signing Mick Quinn topped the Football League goal charts with 32 goals, had squandered their chance on an immediate return to the First Division by losing to Sunderland in the playoff semi-finals. Blackburn Rovers, who had last played First Division football in the mid-1960s, lost in the other semi-final.

Two of the teams who just missed out on the playoffs enjoyed memorable cup runs. West Ham United reached the semi-finals of the League Cup, while Oldham Athletic were semi-finalists in the FA Cup and beaten finalists in the League Cup.

Stoke City were relegated to the Third Division after finishing bottom of the Second Division, and were joined in the drop zone by Bradford City and AFC Bournemouth. Middlesbrough, who finished fourth from bottom, narrowly avoided a second successive relegation.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Leeds United (C, P) 46 24 13 9 79 52 +27 85 Promotion to the First Division
2 Sheffield United (P) 46 24 13 9 78 58 +20 85
3 Newcastle United 46 22 14 10 80 55 +25 80 Qualification for the Second Division play-offs
4 Swindon Town[lower-alpha 3] (O) 46 20 14 12 79 59 +20 74
5 Blackburn Rovers 46 19 17 10 74 59 +15 74
6 Sunderland[lower-alpha 3] (P) 46 20 14 12 70 64 +6 74
7 West Ham United 46 20 12 14 80 57 +23 72
8 Oldham Athletic 46 19 14 13 70 57 +13 71
9 Ipswich Town 46 19 12 15 67 66 +1 69
10 Wolverhampton Wanderers 46 18 13 15 67 60 +7 67
11 Port Vale 46 15 16 15 62 57 +5 61
12 Portsmouth 46 15 16 15 62 65 −3 61
13 Leicester City 46 15 14 17 67 79 −12 59
14 Hull City 46 14 16 16 58 65 −7 58
15 Watford 46 14 15 17 58 60 −2 57
16 Plymouth Argyle 46 14 13 19 58 63 −5 55
17 Oxford United 46 15 9 22 57 66 −9 54
18 Brighton & Hove Albion 46 15 9 22 56 72 −16 54
19 Barnsley 46 13 15 18 49 71 −22 54
20 West Bromwich Albion 46 12 15 19 67 71 −4 51
21 Middlesbrough 46 13 11 22 52 63 −11 50
22 Bournemouth (R) 46 12 12 22 57 76 −19 48 Relegation to the Third Division
23 Bradford City (R) 46 9 14 23 44 68 −24 41
24 Stoke City (R) 46 6 19 21 35 63 −28 37
Source: Statto
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Notes:
  1. Liverpool were banned by UEFA from its competitions from the season 1985–86 on for 10 years, because of the Heysel Stadium disaster in 1985, involving Liverpool fans. The ban was eventually lifted for the 1991–92 season.
  2. Manchester United qualified for the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup as the 1989–90 FA Cup winners.
  3. Swindon Town were disqualified from promotion after being found guilty of making illegal payments, and the play-off runners-up Sunderland were promoted in their place.

Results
Home \ Away BAR BLB BOU BRA B&HA HUL IPS LEE LEI MID NEW OLD OXF PLY PTV POR SHU STK SUN SWI WAT WBA WHU WOL
Barnsley 0–0 0–1 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–1 1–0 2–2 1–1 1–1 1–0 1–0 1–1 0–3 0–1 1–2 3–2 1–0 0–1 0–1 2–2 1–1 2–2
Blackburn Rovers 5–0 1–1 2–2 1–1 0–0 2–2 1–2 2–4 2–4 2–0 1–0 2–2 2–0 1–0 2–0 0–0 3–0 1–1 2–1 2–2 2–1 5–4 2–3
Bournemouth 2–1 2–4 1–0 0–2 5–4 3–1 0–1 2–3 2–2 2–1 2–0 0–1 2–2 1–0 0–1 0–1 2–1 0–1 1–2 0–0 1–1 1–1 1–1
Bradford City 0–0 0–1 1–0 2–0 2–3 1–0 0–1 2–0 0–1 3–2 1–1 1–2 0–1 2–2 1–1 1–4 1–0 0–1 1–1 2–1 2–0 2–1 1–1
Brighton & Hove Albion 1–1 1–2 2–1 2–1 2–0 1–0 2–2 1–0 1–0 0–3 1–1 0–1 2–1 2–0 0–0 2–2 1–4 1–2 1–2 1–0 0–3 3–0 1–1
Hull City 1–2 2–0 1–4 2–1 0–2 4–3 0–1 1–1 0–0 1–3 0–0 1–0 3–3 2–1 1–2 0–0 0–0 3–2 2–3 0–0 0–2 1–1 2–0
Ipswich Town 3–1 3–1 1–1 1–0 2–1 0–1 2–2 2–2 3–0 2–1 1–1 1–0 3–0 3–2 0–1 1–1 2–2 1–1 1–0 1–0 3–1 1–0 1–3
Leeds United 1–2 1–1 3–0 1–1 3–0 4–3 1–1 2–1 2–1 1–0 1–1 2–1 2–1 0–0 2–0 4–0 2–0 2–0 4–0 2–1 2–2 3–2 1–0
Leicester City 2–2 0–1 2–1 1–1 1–0 2–1 0–1 4–3 2–1 2–2 3–0 0–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 2–5 2–1 2–3 2–1 1–1 1–3 1–0 0–0
Middlesbrough 0–1 0–3 2–1 2–0 2–2 1–0 1–2 0–2 4–1 4–1 1–0 1–0 0–2 2–3 2–0 3–3 0–1 3–0 0–2 1–2 0–0 0–1 4–2
Newcastle United 4–1 2–1 3–0 1–0 2–0 2–0 2–1 5–2 5–4 2–2 2–1 2–3 3–1 2–2 1–0 2–0 3–0 1–1 0–0 2–1 2–1 2–1 1–4
Oldham Athletic 2–0 2–0 4–0 2–2 1–1 3–2 4–1 3–1 1–0 2–0 1–1 4–1 3–2 2–1 3–3 0–2 2–0 2–1 2–2 1–1 2–1 3–0 1–1
Oxford United 2–3 1–1 1–2 2–1 0–1 0–0 2–2 2–4 4–2 3–1 2–1 0–1 3–2 0–0 2–1 3–0 3–0 0–1 2–2 1–1 0–1 0–2 2–2
Plymouth Argyle 2–1 2–2 1–0 1–1 2–1 1–2 1–0 1–1 3–1 1–2 1–1 2–0 2–0 1–2 0–2 0–0 3–0 3–0 0–3 0–0 2–2 1–1 0–1
Port Vale 2–1 0–0 1–1 3–2 2–1 1–1 5–0 0–0 2–1 1–1 1–2 2–0 1–2 3–0 1–1 1–1 0–0 1–2 2–0 1–0 2–1 2–2 3–1
Portsmouth 2–1 1–1 2–1 3–0 3–0 2–2 2–3 3–3 2–3 3–1 1–1 2–1 2–1 0–3 2–0 3–2 0–0 3–3 1–1 1–2 1–1 0–1 1–3
Sheffield United 1–2 1–2 4–2 1–1 5–4 0–0 2–0 2–2 1–1 1–0 1–1 2–1 2–1 1–0 2–1 2–1 2–1 1–3 2–0 4–1 3–1 0–2 3–0
Stoke City 0–1 0–1 0–0 1–1 3–2 1–1 0–0 1–1 0–1 0–0 2–1 1–2 1–2 0–0 1–1 1–2 0–1 0–2 1–1 2–2 2–1 1–1 2–0
Sunderland 4–2 0–1 3–2 1–0 2–1 0–1 2–4 0–1 2–2 2–1 0–0 2–3 1–0 3–1 2–2 2–2 1–1 2–1 2–2 4–0 1–1 4–3 1–1
Swindon Town 0–0 4–3 2–3 3–1 1–2 1–3 3–0 3–2 1–1 1–1 1–1 3–2 3–0 3–0 3–0 2–2 0–2 6–0 0–2 2–0 2–1 2–2 3–1
Watford 2–2 3–1 2–2 7–2 4–2 3–1 3–3 1–0 3–1 1–0 0–0 3–0 0–1 1–2 1–0 1–0 1–3 1–1 1–1 0–2 0–2 0–1 3–1
West Bromwich Albion 7–0 2–2 2–2 2–0 3–0 1–1 1–3 2–1 0–1 0–0 1–5 2–2 3–2 0–3 2–3 0–0 0–3 1–1 1–1 1–2 2–0 1–3 1–2
West Ham United 4–2 1–1 4–1 2–0 3–1 1–2 2–0 0–1 3–1 2–0 0–0 0–2 3–2 3–2 2–2 2–1 5–0 0–0 5–0 1–1 1–0 2–3 4–0
Wolverhampton Wanderers 1–1 1–2 3–1 1–1 2–4 1–2 2–1 1–0 5–0 2–0 0–1 1–1 2–0 1–0 2–0 5–0 1–2 0–0 0–1 2–1 1–1 2–1 1–0
Source:
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Second Division play-offs
Main article: Football League Championship play-offs § 1990

The semifinals were decided over two legs. The final consisted of only a single match.
The full results can be found at: Football League Division Two play-offs 1990.

Semifinals
1st leg – 13 May; 2nd leg – 16 May 1990 		Final at Wembley
28 May 1990
        
3rd Newcastle United 0 0 0
6th Sunderland 0 2 2
6th Sunderland[notes2 1] 0
4th Swindon Town 1
4th Swindon Town 2 2 4
5th Blackburn Rovers 1 1 2
  1. Following successful prosecutions against Swindon Town and the club chairman, Brian Hillier, after they admitted 36 breaches of League rules —
    35 of which are related to illegal payments, Swindon remained in the Second Division and Sunderland took their promotion place (see History of Swindon Town F.C.).

Second Division maps
Locations of the Football League Second Division 1989–1990 teams
Locations of the Football League Second Division London teams 1989–1990

Third Division

The two automatic promotion places in the Third Division were clinched by the two Bristol clubs, with Rovers finishing champions and City finishing runners-up, having both been relegated from the Second Division nine years before. The playoffs were won by Notts County.

Walsall finished bottom of the Fourth Division and suffered a second consecutive relegation in their final season at Fellows Park, leaving them in the Fourth Division for their first season at the new Bescot Stadium. Joining them in the bottom four were Blackpool, Cardiff City and Northampton Town.

Football League, Third Division
Season1989–90
ChampionsBristol Rovers (1st title)
PromotedBristol City,
Notts County
RelegatedBlackpool,
Cardiff City,
Northampton,
Walsall
Matches played552
Goals scored1,414 (2.56 per match)
Top goalscorerBob Taylor (Bristol City), 27[2]

Pos Team Pld HW HD HL HGF HGA AW AD AL AGF AGA GD Pts Promotion or relegation
1 Bristol Rovers 46 15 8 0 43 14 11 7 5 28 21 +36 93 Division Champions, promoted
2 Bristol City 46 15 5 3 40 16 12 5 6 36 24 +36 91 Promoted
3 Notts County 46 17 4 2 40 18 8 8 7 33 35 +20 87 Promoted through play-offs[lower-alpha 1]
4 Tranmere Rovers 46 15 5 3 54 22 8 6 9 32 27 +37 80 Participated in play-offs
5 Bury 46 11 7 5 35 19 10 4 9 35 30 +21 74
6 Bolton Wanderers 46 12 7 4 32 19 6 8 9 27 29 +11 69
7 Birmingham City 46 10 7 6 33 19 8 5 10 27 40 +1 66
8 Huddersfield Town 46 11 5 7 30 23 6 9 8 31 39 −1 65
9 Rotherham United 46 12 6 5 48 28 5 7 11 23 34 +9 64
10 Reading 46 10 9 4 33 21 5 10 8 24 32 +4 64
11 Shrewsbury Town 46 10 9 4 38 24 6 6 11 21 30 +5 63
12 Crewe Alexandra 46 10 8 5 32 24 5 9 9 24 29 +3 62
13 Brentford 46 11 4 8 41 31 7 3 13 25 35 0 61
14 Leyton Orient 46 9 6 8 28 24 7 4 12 24 32 −4 58
15 Mansfield Town 46 13 2 8 34 25 3 5 15 16 40 −15 55
16 Chester City 46 11 7 5 30 23 2 8 13 13 32 −12 54
17 Swansea City 46 10 6 7 25 27 4 6 13 20 36 −18 54
18 Wigan Athletic 46 10 6 7 29 22 3 8 12 19 42 −16 53
19 Preston North End 46 10 7 6 42 30 4 3 16 23 49 −14 52
20 Fulham 46 8 8 7 33 27 4 7 12 22 39 −11 51
21 Cardiff City 46 6 9 8 30 35 6 5 12 21 35 −19 50 Relegated
22 Northampton Town 46 7 7 9 27 31 4 7 12 24 37 −17 47
23 Blackpool 46 8 6 9 29 33 2 10 11 20 40 −24 46
24 Walsall 46 6 8 9 23 30 3 6 14 17 42 −32 41
Source:
Notes:
  1. Notts County were promoted through the play-offs.

Third Division results
Home \ Away BIR BLP BOL BRE BRI BRR BRY CAR CHR CRE FUL HUD LEY MAN NOR NTC PNE REA ROT SHR SWA TRA WAL WIG
Birmingham City 3–1 1–0 0–1 0–4 2–2 0–0 1–1 0–0 3–0 1–1 0–1 0–0 4–1 4–0 1–2 3–1 0–1 4–1 0–1 2–0 2–1 2–0 0–0
Blackpool 3–2 2–1 4–0 1–3 0–3 0–1 1–0 1–3 1–3 0–1 2–2 1–0 3–1 1–0 0–0 2–2 0–0 1–2 0–1 2–2 0–3 4–3 0–0
Bolton Wanderers 3–1 2–0 0–1 1–0 1–0 3–1 3–1 1–0 0–0 0–0 2–2 2–1 1–1 0–3 3–0 2–1 3–0 0–2 0–1 0–0 1–1 1–1 3–2
Brentford 0–1 5–0 1–2 0–2 2–1 0–1 0–1 1–1 0–2 2–0 2–1 4–3 2–1 3–2 0–1 2–2 1–1 4–2 1–1 2–1 2–4 4–0 3–1
Bristol City 1–0 2–0 1–1 2–0 0–0 1–0 1–0 1–0 4–1 5–1 1–1 2–1 1–1 3–1 2–0 2–1 0–1 0–0 2–1 1–3 1–3 4–0 3–0
Bristol Rovers 0–0 1–1 1–1 1–0 3–0 2–1 2–1 2–1 1–1 2–0 2–2 0–0 1–1 4–2 3–2 3–0 0–0 2–0 1–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 6–1
Bury 0–0 2–0 2–0 0–2 1–1 0–0 2–0 1–0 0–3 0–0 6–0 2–0 3–0 1–0 3–2 1–2 4–0 1–1 0–0 3–2 1–2 0–2 2–2
Cardiff City 0–1 2–2 0–2 2–2 0–3 1–1 3–1 1–1 0–0 3–3 1–5 1–1 1–0 2–3 1–3 3–0 3–2 2–0 0–1 0–2 0–0 3–1 1–1
Chester 4–0 2–0 2–0 1–1 0–3 0–0 1–4 1–0 2–1 0–2 2–1 1–0 0–2 0–1 3–3 3–1 1–1 2–0 1–0 1–0 2–2 1–1 0–0
Crewe Alexandra 0–2 2–0 2–2 2–3 0–1 1–0 2–1 1–1 0–0 2–3 3–0 0–1 2–1 2–1 1–0 1–0 1–1 0–0 1–1 1–1 2–2 3–1 3–2
Fulham 1–2 0–0 2–2 1–0 0–1 1–2 2–2 2–5 1–0 1–1 0–0 1–2 1–0 1–1 5–2 3–1 1–2 1–1 2–1 2–0 1–2 0–0 4–0
Huddersfield Town 1–2 2–2 1–1 1–0 2–1 1–1 2–1 2–3 4–1 0–1 0–1 2–0 1–0 2–2 1–2 0–2 0–1 2–1 1–1 1–0 1–0 1–0 2–0
Leyton Orient 1–2 2–0 0–0 0–1 1–1 0–1 2–3 3–1 0–3 2–1 1–1 1–0 3–1 1–1 0–1 3–1 4–1 1–1 1–0 0–2 0–1 1–1 1–0
Mansfield Town 5–2 0–3 0–1 2–3 1–0 0–1 1–0 1–0 1–0 2–1 3–0 1–2 1–0 1–2 1–3 2–2 1–1 3–1 2–1 4–0 1–0 0–2 1–0
Northampton Town 2–2 4–2 0–2 0–2 2–0 1–2 0–1 1–1 1–0 3–1 2–2 1–0 0–1 1–2 0–0 1–2 2–1 1–2 2–1 1–1 0–4 1–1 1–1
Notts County 3–2 0–1 2–1 3–1 0–0 3–1 0–4 2–1 0–0 2–0 2–0 1–0 1–0 4–2 3–2 2–1 0–0 2–0 4–0 2–1 1–0 2–0 1–1
Preston North End 2–2 2–1 1–4 4–2 2–2 0–1 2–3 4–0 5–0 0–0 1–0 3–3 0–3 4–0 0–0 2–4 1–0 0–1 2–1 2–0 2–2 2–0 1–1
Reading 0–2 1–1 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–1 1–0 0–1 1–1 1–1 3–2 0–0 1–1 1–0 3–2 1–1 6–0 3–2 3–3 1–1 1–0 0–1 2–0
Rotherham United 5–1 1–1 1–0 2–1 1–2 3–2 1–3 4–0 5–0 1–3 2–1 0–0 5–2 0–0 2–0 1–2 3–1 1–1 4–2 3–2 0–0 2–2 1–2
Shrewsbury Town 2–0 1–1 3–3 1–0 0–1 2–3 3–1 0–0 2–0 0–0 2–0 3–3 4–2 0–1 2–0 2–2 2–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 3–1 2–0 1–3
Swansea City 1–1 0–0 0–0 2–1 0–5 0–0 0–1 0–1 2–1 3–2 4–2 1–3 0–1 1–0 1–1 0–0 2–1 1–6 1–0 0–1 1–0 2–0 3–0
Tranmere Rovers 5–1 4–2 1–3 2–2 6–0 1–2 2–4 3–0 0–0 1–1 2–1 4–0 3–0 1–1 0–0 2–0 2–1 3–1 2–1 3–1 3–0 2–1 2–0
Walsall 0–1 1–1 2–1 2–1 0–2 1–2 2–2 0–2 1–1 1–1 0–0 2–3 1–3 1–0 1–0 2–2 1–0 1–1 1–1 0–2 0–1 2–1 1–2
Wigan Athletic 1–0 1–1 2–0 2–1 2–3 1–2 0–0 1–1 1–0 1–0 2–1 1–2 0–2 4–0 0–0 1–1 0–1 3–1 0–3 0–0 2–0 1–3 3–0
Source:
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Third Division play-offs
Main article: Football League One play-offs § 1990

The semifinals were decided over two legs. The final consisted of only a single match.
The full results can be found at: Football League Division Three play-offs 1990.

Semifinals
1st leg – 13 May; 2nd leg – 16 May 1990 		Final at Wembley
27 May 1990
        
3rd Notts County 1 2 3
6th Bolton Wanderers 1 0 1
3rd Notts County 2
4th Tranmere Rovers 0
4th Tranmere Rovers 0 2 2
5th Bury 0 0 0

Third Division maps
Locations of the Football League Third Division teams 1989–1990
Locations of the Football League Third Division London teams 1989–1990

Fourth Division

Exeter City clinched the Fourth Division title to end their six-year spell in the league's basement division. They were joined by Southend United, relegated the previous season, and by a Grimsby Town side who had spent two seasons in the Fourth Division since their most recent relegation. The final promotion place went to playoff winners Cambridge United, who triumphed 1–0 over Chesterfield in their first professional Wembley final with a goal from promising young striker Dion Dublin. Losing semi-finalists in the playoffs were newly promoted Maidstone United, and a Stockport County side whose striker Brett Angell was the division's top scorer on 23 league goals.

Colchester United, who had managed a remarkable escape from relegation the previous season under inspirational new manager Jock Wallace, were unable to escape the drop this time, going down after 40 years in the Football League and being replaced by a Darlington side who had dropped out of the league 12 months before.

Football League, Fourth Division
Season1989–90
ChampionsExeter City (1st title)
PromotedCambridge United,
Grimsby Town,
Southend United
Relegated to ConferenceColchester United
New club in the leagueMaidstone United
Matches played552
Goals scored1,426 (2.58 per match)
Top goalscorerBrett Angell (Stockport County), 23[2]

Pos Team Pld HW HD HL HGF HGA AW AD AL AGF AGA GD Pts Promotion or relegation
1 Exeter City 46 20 3 0 50 14 8 2 13 33 34 +35 89 Division Champions, promoted
2 Grimsby Town 46 14 4 5 41 20 8 9 6 29 27 +23 79 Promoted
3 Southend United 46 15 3 5 35 14 7 6 10 26 34 +13 75
4 Stockport County 46 13 6 4 45 27 8 5 10 23 35 +6 74 Participated in play-offs
5 Maidstone United[lower-alpha 1] 46 14 4 5 49 21 8 3 12 28 40 +16 73
6 Cambridge United 46 14 3 6 45 30 7 7 9 31 36 +10 73 Promoted through play-offs[lower-alpha 2]
7 Chesterfield 46 12 9 2 41 19 7 5 11 22 31 +13 71 Participated in play-offs
8 Carlisle United 46 15 4 4 38 20 6 4 13 23 40 +1 71
9 Peterborough United 46 10 8 5 35 23 7 9 7 24 23 +13 68
10 Lincoln City 46 11 6 6 30 27 7 8 8 18 21 0 68
11 Scunthorpe United 46 9 9 5 42 25 8 6 9 27 29 +15 66
12 Rochdale 46 11 4 8 28 23 9 2 12 24 32 −3 66
13 York City 46 10 5 8 29 24 6 11 6 26 29 +2 64
14 Gillingham 46 9 8 6 28 21 8 3 12 18 27 −2 62
15 Torquay United 46 12 2 9 33 29 3 10 10 20 37 −13 57
16 Burnley 46 6 10 7 19 18 8 4 11 26 37 −10 56
17 Hereford United 46 7 4 12 31 32 8 6 9 25 30 −6 55
18 Scarborough 46 10 5 8 35 28 5 5 13 25 45 −13 55
19 Hartlepool United 46 12 4 7 45 33 3 6 14 21 55 −22 55
20 Doncaster Rovers 46 7 7 9 29 29 7 2 14 24 31 −7 51
21 Wrexham 46 8 8 7 28 28 5 4 14 23 39 −16 51 Welsh Cup runners-up, qualified for UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1990–91 First round[lower-alpha 3]
22 Aldershot 46 8 7 8 28 26 4 7 12 21 43 −20 50
23 Halifax Town 46 5 9 9 31 29 7 4 12 26 36 −8 49
24 Colchester United 46 9 3 11 26 25 2 7 14 22 50 −27 43 Relegated to Conference
Source:
Notes:
  1. New club in the league
  2. Cambridge United were promoted through play-offs.
  3. Wrexham were runners-up in the Welsh Cup final, and since winners Hereford United are an English club, Wrexham were awarded the right to participate in the Cup Winners' Cup.

Fourth Division results
Home \ Away ALD BUR CAM CRL CHF COL DON EXE GIL GRI HAL HAR HER LIN MDS PET ROC SCA SCU STD STP TOR WRE YOR
Aldershot 1–1 0–2 1–0 0–0 4–0 1–1 0–1 1–0 0–0 2–0 6–1 0–2 0–1 0–2 0–1 1–1 1–1 4–2 0–5 2–1 1–2 1–0 2–2
Burnley 0–0 1–3 2–1 0–0 0–0 0–1 1–0 1–2 1–1 1–0 0–0 3–1 0–0 1–1 1–2 0–1 3–0 0–1 0–0 0–0 1–0 2–3 1–1
Cambridge United 2–2 0–1 1–2 0–1 4–0 1–0 3–2 2–1 2–0 1–0 2–1 0–1 2–1 2–0 3–2 0–3 5–2 5–3 2–1 0–2 5–2 1–1 2–2
Carlisle United 1–3 1–1 3–1 4–3 1–0 1–0 1–0 3–0 1–1 1–1 1–0 2–1 1–2 3–2 0–0 0–1 3–1 0–1 3–0 3–1 2–0 1–0 2–1
Chesterfield 2–0 0–1 1–1 3–0 1–1 0–1 2–1 2–0 2–0 4–3 3–1 2–1 0–0 3–1 1–1 2–1 2–2 1–1 1–1 1–1 5–1 3–0 0–0
Colchester United 1–0 1–2 1–2 4–0 1–0 2–0 0–1 2–0 1–0 2–2 3–1 1–1 0–1 4–1 0–1 1–2 0–0 1–0 0–2 0–1 0–3 1–3 0–2
Doncaster Rovers 0–1 2–3 2–1 1–1 1–0 2–0 2–1 0–0 0–0 3–4 2–2 0–1 0–1 1–1 0–3 4–0 1–1 1–2 0–1 2–1 2–1 2–2 1–2
Exeter City 2–0 2–1 3–2 0–0 2–1 2–1 1–0 3–1 2–1 2–0 3–1 2–0 3–0 2–0 2–0 5–0 3–2 1–0 2–1 1–1 3–0 1–1 3–1
Gillingham 0–0 0–0 1–0 2–1 3–0 3–3 3–1 1–1 1–2 3–1 0–0 0–1 1–1 1–2 0–0 1–0 2–0 0–3 5–0 0–3 0–2 1–0 0–0
Grimsby Town 2–1 4–2 0–0 1–0 0–1 4–1 2–1 1–0 2–0 1–1 0–0 0–2 1–0 2–3 1–2 1–2 3–0 2–1 2–0 4–2 0–0 5–1 3–0
Halifax Town 4–2 0–0 0–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 0–2 1–2 0–1 2–2 4–0 1–1 0–1 1–2 2–2 1–0 1–2 0–1 1–2 1–2 3–1 4–2 2–2
Hartlepool United 2–0 3–0 1–2 1–0 3–1 0–2 0–6 0–3 1–2 4–2 2–0 1–2 1–1 4–2 2–2 2–1 4–1 3–2 1–1 5–0 1–1 3–0 1–2
Hereford United 4–1 0–1 0–2 2–2 3–2 2–0 0–1 2–1 1–2 0–1 0–1 4–1 2–2 3–0 1–2 1–3 3–1 1–2 0–3 1–2 0–0 0–0 1–2
Lincoln City 0–1 1–0 4–3 1–3 1–1 2–1 2–1 1–5 1–3 1–1 2–1 4–1 1–0 1–2 1–0 1–2 0–0 1–0 2–0 0–0 2–2 1–0 0–0
Maidstone United 5–1 1–2 2–2 5–2 0–1 4–1 1–0 1–0 0–1 2–2 1–2 4–2 2–0 2–0 1–1 2–0 4–1 1–1 3–0 0–1 5–1 2–0 1–0
Peterborough United 1–1 4–1 1–2 3–0 1–1 1–0 2–1 4–3 1–1 1–1 3–0 0–2 1–1 1–0 1–0 0–1 1–2 1–1 1–2 2–0 1–1 3–1 1–1
Rochdale 2–0 2–1 2–0 1–2 1–0 2–2 1–3 1–0 1–0 0–1 0–2 0–0 5–2 1–0 3–2 1–2 1–0 3–0 0–1 1–1 0–0 0–3 0–1
Scarborough 1–0 4–2 1–1 2–1 2–3 2–2 1–2 1–2 0–1 3–1 2–3 4–1 0–1 2–0 0–1 2–1 2–1 0–0 1–1 2–0 0–0 2–1 1–3
Scunthorpe United 3–2 3–0 1–1 2–3 0–1 4–0 4–1 5–4 0–0 2–2 1–1 0–1 3–3 1–1 1–0 0–0 0–1 0–1 1–1 5–0 2–0 3–1 1–1
Southend United 5–0 3–2 0–0 2–0 0–2 0–2 2–0 1–2 2–0 0–2 2–0 3–0 2–0 2–0 0–1 0–0 3–2 1–0 0–0 2–0 1–0 2–1 2–0
Stockport County 1–1 3–1 3–1 3–1 3–1 1–1 3–1 2–1 1–0 2–4 0–1 6–0 2–1 1–1 1–2 0–0 2–1 3–2 4–2 1–0 1–1 0–2 2–2
Torquay United 1–2 0–1 3–0 1–2 1–0 4–1 2–0 0–2 0–2 0–3 1–0 4–3 1–1 0–3 2–1 2–1 1–0 3–2 0–3 3–0 3–0 0–1 1–1
Wrexham 2–2 1–0 2–3 1–0 0–2 3–2 0–0 1–1 2–1 0–1 2–1 1–2 0–0 0–2 4–2 2–1 1–1 0–2 0–0 3–3 0–1 1–1 2–0
York City 2–2 1–3 4–2 0–1 4–0 3–1 2–1 3–0 1–0 0–1 0–2 1–1 1–2 0–0 0–0 1–0 1–0 1–2 0–1 2–1 0–3 1–1 1–0
Source:
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Fourth Division play-offs
Main article: Football League Two play-offs § 1990

The semifinals were decided over two legs. The final consisted of only a single match.
The full results can be found at: Football League Division Four play-offs 1990.

Semifinals
1st leg –13 May; 2nd leg –16 May 1990 		Final at Wembley
26 May 1990
        
4th Stockport County 0 0 0
7th Chesterfield 4 2 6
7th Chesterfield 0
6th Cambridge United 1
5th Maidstone United (1897) 1 0 1
6th Cambridge United 1 2 3

Fourth Division maps
Locations of the Football League Fourth Division teams 1989–1990

See also

References
  1. "England 1989–90". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 26 January 2010. Retrieved 24 February 2010.
  2. "English League Leading Goalscorers". RSSSF. Retrieved 31 October 2010.
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